Mayor, councillors urge Ottawa police to revisit COVID-19 vaccination policy
Mayor Jim Watson is calling on the Ottawa Police Service to 'revisit' their COVID-19 vaccination policy that allows unvaccinated officers to stay on the job.
The policy, released to all officers and civilians last Friday, doesn't make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for employees to report to work. Instead, unvaccinated members must provide a negative COVID-19 test result every 72 hours.
"I don't support what the Ottawa police have done. They are an independent organization and have their own board, but I think we all have to practise what we preach," said Watson after Wednesday's council meeting. "We are out there telling people to get double vaccinated, or they risk losing their jobs at the city of Ottawa. It’s not a frivolous thing that we are engaged in, it is a serious matter.
"Police come in contact with dozens of people every single day and for the life of me I can’t understand why they wouldn’t follow the same rules that other public servants in Ottawa, quite frankly throughout the country are following."
Despite strong opposition to the policy from the mayor and some councillors, Ottawa police are standing by the policy.
"Our goal is to have our members 100 per cent vaccinated, but this is a policy that recognizes that there are some members who are vaccine hesitant," said Acting Deputy Chief Trish Ferguson.
"With limited resources, we want to make sure that we are able to provide the community with safe measures and to continue to protect our own people since we have since the beginning of the pandemic.”
As of last Friday, 83 per cent of police employees had said they were fully vaccinated. Ferguson says police are still collecting data on the vaccination status of all employees.
"With us putting down a policy that vaccines are mandated and a deadline, without opportunity for our members to rectify this, there is the possibility we could be facing not having enough cars on the road responding to calls. We don’t want to put the community in jeopardy," said Ferguson.
"We are an emergency service, we need to ensure that we have an adequate number of officers on the road at a given time.”
Police will pay for the cost of the COVID-19 test if a member goes to a designated location. If a member goes elsewhere, they will need to pay for the test out of pocket.
Ferguson insists taxpayers will not be on the hook for additional funding to pay for the tests.
"We will work within budget envelope for this."
Opposition is mounting for police to revisit the policy.
Chair of the Ottawa Board of Health Keith Egli says, "It is my understanding that OPH did not recommend this path forward. This needs to be looked at again…. Not only for the general public but for police officers themselves, they are both at risk."
Councillor Tim Tierney has submitted at inquiry with the Police Services Board.
“Vaccines are free, tests are not, and quite frankly taxpayers are livid at this possibility," said Tierney. "The only thing that is going to fix this is everyone getting vaccinated like the other 14,000 employees of the city of Ottawa."
Ottawa Police Services Board Chair Diane Deans said on Twitter that "100 per cent of officers should be fully vaccinated", adding the board cannot direct this policy under the Police Services Act.
Police say they did have conversations with Ottawa Public Health about the vaccination policy but ultimately take guidelines from the province and the Police Services Act.
Ferguson says, "We have had conversations with OPH, but we follow provincial guidelines, and the Police Service Act… we feel the course we have chosen in a successful one."
Police say the policy is in place until at least Jan. 31.
"As we have seen with the pandemic in general, things have changed. And we have be able to adjust as we go on, and I think this policy is no different," said Ferguson. "We have set a date of Jan. 31 but should conditions change provincially or locally we will be adjusting and making sure we are maintaining that level of safety for the community.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.
Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
B.C. judge orders shared dog custody for exes who both 'clearly love Stella'
In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a B.C. judge has awarded a former couple joint custody of their dog.
Saskatoon police to search landfill for remains of woman missing since 2020
Saskatoon police say they will begin searching the city’s landfill for the remains of Mackenzie Lee Trottier, who has been missing for more than three years.
Shivering for health: The myths and truths of ice baths explained
In a climate of social media-endorsed wellness rituals, plunging into cold water has promised to aid muscle recovery, enhance mental health and support immune system function. But the evidence of such benefits sits on thin ice, according to researchers.